Crown and defence counsel are seeking a conditional discharge with three years of probation for a Vancouver man who pleaded guilty to voyeurism in connection with an incident that got him banned from Park Royal Mall last year.
Saman Namvar Haghighi Shirazi, 33, was initially charged with three counts of unlawfully observing or recording people for a sexual purpose on May 19, 2024.
He pleaded guilty on Oct. 21 to one of the three charges, which was amended to include the complainants named on the other two counts, which Crown stated would be stayed at the conclusion of the sentencing hearing.
According to an Agreed Statement of Facts, a Park Royal loss prevention officer observed Shirazi holding his cell phone to take photos of two women.
Court heard CCTV video showed him wandering around the mall, where he filmed approximately six women over 40 minutes.
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Several videos on Shirazi’s phone revealed recordings of women’s legs and under their skirts, with buttocks shown in a couple of cases.
Shirazi, who has no prior criminal record, was arrested inside the mall.
Crown suggested probation conditions include no contact with the complainants, a no-go order to Park Royal, community service hours, and counselling as directed.
Shirazi’s guilty plea was a mitigating factor, said the Crown, but the fact the offence went on for 40 minutes while the accused looked for and followed the next victim(s), was aggravating.
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Shirazi addressed the court and said he is filled with regret and shame over the incident.
“What I did was extremely wrong and I want to sincerely apologize,” he stated. “There’s absolutely no excuse for violating someone’s trust and privacy in the way I did.”
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Vancouver man facing voyeurism charges
Shirazi also said he’s spent a lot of time figuring out why he did what he did.
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“I want to ensure the court this behaviour will never happen again,” Shirazi told the court.
Defence counsel said his client is a first-time offender who went to SFU for engineering before completing the Masters program in mechanical engineering at UBC, specializing in robotics.
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Jonathan Israels said the charges have been devastating for Shirazi, who was initially put on leave from his job with a small engineering firm in response to news coverage of the voyeurism, and later terminated. He has since sought other employment and even volunteer work, without success.
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At the time of the offence, Israels said Shirazi was struggling from loneliness and self-doubt, feeling insecure and wallowing in self-pity, when he suddenly felt the impulse to record the victims in order to fill a void in his life.
He added this was seemingly a crime of impulse with no planning involved, and Shirazi had been out with his family that afternoon.
Shirazi had consumed alcohol during lunch with his parents, and combining stimulant (ADHD) medication with alcohol may have tainted his client’s better judgement, said Israels.
Defence counsel told the court Shirazi is apologetic, embarrassed and ashamed, and pleaded guilty to atone for his mistakes.
Shirazi, Israels said, has also immersed himself in counselling courses, including relationship and sex offender treatment.
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“He wanted to leave no stone unturned in his quest for rehabilitation,” said Israels. “This incident was an aberration of Mr. Shirazi’s otherwise strong moral character.”
Shirazi, who entered the courthouse wearing a mask and later used the emergency exit to leave, bypassing cameras at the front entrance, had no comment outside court.
If the judge accedes to the joint sentencing submission, Shirazi will avoid a criminal record if he completes the conditions of his probation.
A decision is expected at a later date.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
